You've heard and read a great deal about people using weight loss injections to get slim, you feel the moment has come to give it a go ahead of the festive season. The problem is expense.
But it seems alternatives exist rather than getting a prescription and going to the pharmacy. An SMS comes through providing a URL to a site with more affordable drugs – and requiring no need to navigate official channels. And you saw a comparable advertisement on online platforms recently, so you decide to take the plunge.
The catch is these ads are highly likely to be scams. At best, you'll receive no product and forfeit any funds you paid. In the worst, you obtain a counterfeit item, containing unspecified components which may result in serious medical issues.
The widespread use of legitimate slimming drugs has resulted in a rise in counterfeit products entering circulation and scams established to simply take people’s money.
Health authorities have advised avoiding buying these illegal weight loss medicines absent a doctor's order from beauty salons, fake pharmacy websites or through digital platforms, stating they might include “harmful substances and other ingredients which may provoke real harm”.
Recent statistics from a high street bank reveal a significant surge in the quantity of customers who have been affected by the scam. According to the bank, the amount of money lost to fraudulent activities related to slimming jabs, injector pens, tablets and lipid-reducing solutions between July and September , was over twice the overall amount stolen in the prior quarter. Each incident typically sets back sufferers £120, reports indicate.
“Fraudsters are actively exploiting individuals' self-doubts and health concerns, with such frauds skyrocketing in the past few months,” says a financial institution's fraud prevention lead.
How It Appears
Most take place on messaging apps and social networks. Across platforms, an account may mimic the brand that you seek, but there will typically be slight variations in text or brand marks.
The messages or posts will often use urgency-laden phrases such as “time-sensitive deal”, “special promotion” or “complimentary gift”.
With the cost of some legitimate weight loss jabs, rose recently, the fraudsters will set the cost of their “product” lower.
“Purchasing from unapproved vendors on the internet can come at a serious financial, health-related and psychological toll,” says the security specialist.
What to do
Like any deceptive scheme, the wise saying holds true: should something seem too good to be true, then it probably is.
Medical authorities have warned people to be extremely cautious when buying medicines via the web. These products must solely be acquired from a licensed chemist with a valid script provided by a medical practitioner, they advise. If sourced elsewhere, they may pose serious risks to wellbeing.
Criminals can go to great lengths to design their webpage or social media page appear completely genuine. Should they state to be an internet-based chemist based in the UK, you can check the online portal of the medicines oversight organisation to confirm they are correctly licensed.
